Museum Day to bring free admission to Tennessee institutions on Sept. 18
On Sept. 18, a handful of museums across Tennessee will take part in a nationwide program allowing patrons to visit for free.
The effort is part of the Smithsonian magazine’s 17th annual Museum Day. Tennessee residents can visit the Museum Day website to find a participating museum and download a ticket, which grants the holder and one guest free entry (one ticket per email address).
While tickets will be free, patrons will have to observe all safety precautions and protocols required by the individual institutions.
In a statement announcing the initiative, the Smithsonian Magazine noted that “with many public spaces being shut down for a year or more, Museum Day 2021 celebrates the reopening of museums after long closures due to the COVID-19 pandemic.”
The theme of this year’s museum day is “Experience America,” representing “the return to, and resurgence of, our country’s diverse cultural experiences, in the safest possible way.”
Well into its second decade, Museum Day has been hailed a “springboard to empower and help advance the hopes and ambitions of the public, particularly school-aged children and those in underrepresented communities. It represents a national commitment to access, equity and inclusion.”
In Tennessee, most of the participating museums are located in and around Knoxville, including the Museum of East Tennessee History, the Knoxville Museum of Art, and the Historic Ramsey
House.
The Trousdale Place in Gallatin, and the Tina Turner Museum/west Tennessee Heritage Museum in Brownsville and the Blues Hall of Fame Museum in Memphis will also take part.
For more information and a full list of museums, visit www.smithsonianmag .com/museumday/museum-day-2021.